Memorial Day

I want to wish everyone a Happy Memorial Day. Remember what this holiday is meant for. Be safe and hopefully you can enjoy the weather as well. 

#YLtip on Lemon Vitality

Yogurt is a staple in our house. Although I love Plain Greek Yogurt as a substitute for sour cream, I cannot say I am a fan of it by itself. That can now change! A couple drops of Young Living Vitality essential oil and wah-la I have flavored yogurt. Throw some fresh fruit on top and it's even better.

Spring? How about Summer!

It sure feels like summer here in Wisconsin. Mid 80's the week before everyone's big Memorial Day celebrations.

Enjoy your cookouts, beverages and time with family and friends but please, do not forget the real reason for this holiday.

NingXia Zyng

Goals

How about a little motivation this Monday? It's never hard to throw the work you've started on the back burner to finish some "quick" tasks... but those quick tasks multiply. Once they multiply, your burner begins to boil until you have overcooked what's been waiting so patiently for attention. 

"If you can't stop thinking about it. Don't stop working for it!" 

It can really be that simple if you put your mind to it. What works for me may not work for you but I've been wanting to share my ongoing struggle and recent success.

I'm a craft lover. I love the relaxing sensation it puts my body in but can honestly say I haven't "crafted" in almost 5 years. Not regularly anyways. And of course, I love Young Living. I've began using Young Living within my crafts; homemade products, recipes, and around-the-house. I call them crafts, others might call them simply DIY projects. To each their own! 

Slowly but surely I've been incorporating more and more of my actual crafting, painting, sewing, etc. into my life again. It has gotten easier and easier now that we own our home and can do what we please when we please. The puppy is growing up fast and becoming more and more independent, also freeing up some time for me to do "me stuff". But the real secret is even simpler. GOALS. I've been setting goals for myself (and my husband)! They are more for me than him because I like to encourage him to set his own, but some of mine need his assistance, so they become his too. 

Here are a few tips I use that help me keep on track. Make short term and long term goals. Short term can be anything from a daily goal to a monthly goal. Long term goals are similar and can overlap from monthly to yearly goals. Even 5, 10 or 15 year goals. Below are some of my goals that help keep my vision on track.

Short Term: 

Sunday: mow the lawn. prepare garden for transplanting, misc. laundry, grill burgers

Monday: finish the dishes, wash blankets, wash towels, change bedding, trim the lawn, grill ribs, walk Reggie

Tuesday: bean bag league 6:30, vacuum bedrooms, eat at league?

Wednesday: wash bedding, clean bathroom, crockpot chicken, walk Reggie

Thursday: errands, tacos

Friday: (mom coming to town), shopping, walk Reggie

Saturday: attend baby shower, in-laws in town ? 

Sunday: help move my sister out of her old house to new house (all day event)

Overflow: sort totes in basement (keep, rummage sale), make goats milk soap, make powder laundry detergent, make toilet fizzes, make bathroom tile cleaner, dig platform for shed, build platform for shed, build shed, touch-up bathroom paint

*I tend to make my short term goals on a daily basis. I like to know what I need to get done each night. I move things around as I need to but it makes it easy for me to get done what needs done. I always have an overflow list of things I need done also, just fill in whenever I have down time. These goals I want done within a few days and even a few weeks but not always immediately.

Long Term:

Purchase paint for entry way (have paint colors chosen)

Paint entry way

Purchase paint for kitchen (have paint colors chosen)

Paint kitchen 

Sand cabinet doors & drawers

Paint cabinet doors & drawers

Pick paint color(s) for desk (in basement) ideas- blue/gray or blue/black

Re-finish desk in basement

*My long terms goals help me keep a vision for what I want done but doesn't put the timing on me. I have paint colors picked out and now it is finding the time to paint. I'm kind of holding off until a great paint sale comes because I know I don't have the time to paint right at this moment. But then again, I can make time if I have the paint on hand! We are refinishing our kitchen cabinets so those are another one of those projects that we have the colors picked out but not the immediate time or materials to sand them down, refinish and get in place. That's why they are long term goals for me. 

All in all, "If you can't stop thinking about it, don't stop working for it." I think about the entry way every time I walk in the house. I'm not going to stop working towards finishing it! Same goes for the pile of dirty towels. They'll get done, I have them on my list and I will finish them. It's a matter of being organized. Grab a sticky note and make a small to-do list. You'll be amazed how much easier it is to get your prioritized tasks done!

Guacamole

Similar to my Avocado Salsa recipe, Guacamole is merely the same. The thing I like about guacamole is it is perfect for those who enjoy the taste of avocados but don't particularly enjoy biting into them. In guacamole, it's mashed with other ingredients. In salsa, it's chunked. You choose!

As you can see from the ingredients, they are almost the same as my Avocado Salsa. The difference; Young Living Citrus Fresh essential oil instead of Lemon, added pepper and the main ingredient, garlic! Visit my Recipes Tab for the full recipe. 

Avocado Salsa

Finally, it's here! I made Avocado Salsa this weekend while a friend and I relaxed, did some crafting, a little shopping and of course drank a few glasses of wine! I've became a huge fan of avocados lately and it's no wonder why, they're yummy and good for you.

I'm excited to share my recipe since I throw my own twist on everything! Above are the simple ingredients you need for it. Young Living Lemon essential oil, Lime essential oil, Roma tomato or 2, 2 avocado, onion and cilantro. To see the full recipe, go to my Recipes Tab!

I hope you can enjoy this delicious treat as much as I do.

Frankincense

Frankincense is another one of those oils that I consider a "must have". It has so many properties that help support the body and keep it staying healthy.

Frankincense is known to contain 40% sesquinterpene. "Sesquinterpenes delete bad information in cellular memory and are present in almost all essential oils. The chemistry of essential oils tells us that they are the largest group of terpenes known naturally in the plant and animal kingdom." So, in non-chemistry terms, this is a compound naturally found in plants and animals. Since Young Living follows their strict Seed-To-Seal process, these compounds follow the process into the essential oils. 

"Phenolics are stimulating to the nervous and immune systems. They clean receptor sites of cells so sesquiterpenes can delete faulty information from the cell. They have antioxidant properties and a high level of oxygenating molecules." So again, these are natural compounds that are within the plants that are used to extract these pure essential oils.

"Put 1 drop on the crown of your head before sleep helps stimulate the limbic system (center of memory & emotions) of the brain." 

Sources: 

Martin, Nan, LSH, CRTS. "The Chemistry of Essential Oil Reveals the Properties of the Oil." The Chemistry of Essential Oil Reveals the Properties of the Oil. Nan Martin. Web. 10 May 2016.

Plant-based Ingredients

After a weekend filled with crafting and yard work, I'll be needing these tonight. I barely finished laundry and the house went from clean to disaster in a matter of minutes it seems like.

What does that mean for me? This lady is going from work to the gym to home...where the journey continues to cooking dinner and cleaning! Yah... I've been diffusing Thieves and Orange essential oils while at work today, so my puppy is enjoying that while he prepares for the home to smell of Thieves in every room. #clean #fresh #plantbased What else do I need? Well, we won't get into that!

Needless to say, I'm looking forward to falling asleep to a Thieves infused home and probably pretty tired!

Customize Baked Goods with Vitality Essential Oils

It's true. I made Guacamole and Avocado Salsa this weekend using Citrus Fresh, Lemon and Lime essential oils. Recipe coming soon!

Most Affordable Oils

Are you looking to try some new oils but not sure what to try? What do you want to use the oils for? Let's dig in and figure out what oils would best suit your needs!

Pinterest Challenge Reminder

Don't forget about the Young Living Pinterest Challenge!

Find out more here!

Cooking Night

Tonight will be filled with cooking ingredients for me! I am excited to get my hands dirty. Any avocado fans? Well, that is the main ingredients in all my recipes tonight; Avocado Ice Cream, Guacamole and Fresh Avocado Salsa! Mmmmm Stay tuned for recipes and photos.

Pinterest Challenge

Where are all my Pinterest lovers? 

Young Living is holding a unique contest right now. It is called "Pin It to Win It!" and you don't want to miss out if you're a Pinterest fan.

Here is a run down...

As you may know, all essential oil businesses, including ourselves as members need to follow guidelines that are not misleading in any way, shape or form. It has been a work in progress for many Young Living members as well as educators because simple things such as testimonies are not necessarily compliant to those guidelines. Here is a great rule of thumb when trying to decide if something is compliant:

"Young Living essential oils and their products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Just as some antibiotics work for some people and not for others, essential oils work different for each individual." 

You may find, like myself, that many essential oils work to help everyday symptoms or injuries to the body. That's fantastic! Right now, it is not compliant to promote oils using any of those experiences. Yes, I know... it isn't exactly ideal and it doesn't make sense, but that is the law and myself along with Young Living believe our oils and products don't need to take that route to show everyone just how great these oils are. 

The list below shows a variety of diagnoses, symptoms and medications that are medically diagnosed or medically treatable in some form. All of those are regulated whereas essential oils are not fully regulated at this time. 

Here are 25 of the "hot words" that are considered non-compliant:

ADD/ADHD

Alzheimer's

Antibacterial

Antidepressant

Anti-inflammatory

Antimicrobial

Antiseptic

Antiviral

Arthritis

Autism

Burns

Cancer

Cysts

Diabetes

Ebola

Fibromyalgia

High Blood Pressure

Insomnia

Measles

MMR

MRSA

MS

OCD/PANDAS

Parkinson's Disease

PTSD

Comparison or substitution of any OTC or Rx Drugs

This list is not all-inclusive.

This doesn't mean Young Living products or essential oils won't assist with any of the above articles, but not ALL Young Living products are regulated by the FDA and therefore cannot be advertised as if it were regulated. This means you should not 'try to restate, describe, or imply the hot word without actually using it' also. 

So, what's the challenge right? Okay, here it is...

1. Clean up your Pinterest board. Make sure none of those Hot Words are located in your posts. If they are, remove those posts. We want everything involving Young Living to be compliant and accurate!

2. Pin one of the 7 Young Living Pinterest challenge photos. Check out my Young Living Pinterest Board to re-pin.

Each week Young Living will choose 3 winners for that week's 'featured prize bundle'. Woot Woot! Winners will also be given a shout-out during the International Grand Convention for helping support the integrity of Young Living.

Contest: May 1-June 18

Ready, Set, Go!

7 Pinterest Contest Photos Below

Visit my Young Living Pinterest Board to re-pin!

hard-working weekend = soothing diffuser blends

Are you looking for something to soothe you after working in the garden all weekend? I am! I finally had the opportunity to visit my parents after what seemed like 'forever' ago. They had an abundance of hasta and yellow day lilies that needed to be dug up and split so I was more than willing to come help. I mean, they are my parents and they do help me with anything and everything they can so I always try to come help them out when I can.  Plus, being the great parents they are... they gave me all the plants I wanted. Woot, woot! 

So for those who haven't followed me before, here's a little back story. I have been working on digging up my 'current' landscape since last fall. Yes, last fall. We love DIY projects but sometimes they take a while. It has been a massive work in progress. The plants we had were so woody in areas, out of shape, over-grown, flowery and mis-matched. You all know I like things symmetrical and matching! They were pretty, but just not the best plants for people who love to be outside in the summer either. And they all attract bumble bees like crazy! 

Starting last fall, we tore up all the landscaping fabric and mulch. Our puppy loved grabbing mulch and running around the yard chewing on it so that was the first "must go". I dug up a few of the easy plants and re-steaked landscaping fabric so our rebellious puppy that loves dirt doesn't get dirty.

The leads us to spring. My husband gave me a helping hand and dug out some of the really big bushes Friday night so we could till the dirt before re-planting. Kudos to him, those bushes were rock solid and had roots deeper than ever imaginable. I kept reminding him "just wait until it's done, it'll look so much better!" (Smirk) He knows how much I wanted it done and just put the work in. Man I love than guy! 

Well, Saturday after moving rock and assisting my parents in digging up the plants we managed to bring home about 30 plants. I can't say exactly how many, but it was a lot. I really only needed 14-15 plants but since I had enough, I combined them and made them the 'perfect' size. Yesterday the weather was a bit warmer, which made replanting fun. It didn't take all that long either. Although all I have done is planting, I will need to finish by putting landscaping fabric in place early this week. I am so excited to finally have them planted though. (Pictures to come) 

My next goal- bring in some rock. In the meantime, I'm going to relax to my soothing diffuser blends!